Few composers of gramophone and film songs in the subcontinent had such a tumultuous career and commanded so much respect from music buffs as did legendary Master Ghulam Haider (1906-1953).
Even after 53 years of his death he is still remembered for the contributions he made to the refinement of film music. He is remembered fondly and with reverence by senior denizens for his lilting tunes, which still retain their origin charm.
The list of his widely popular compositions is large; however a few of these are noted in this write-up to rekindle their reverberations and aura in the minds of cine goers.
His compositions for the songs 'Kankaan deeaan faslaan pakkeeaan nain' (Shamshad Begum in Punjabi film 'Yamla Jat'); 'Bus bus way dholaaan kee tera naal bolanaan' (Noor Jehan in duet with Master Ghulam Haider in Punjabi film Chaudhry); Too kaun see badli mein mairey chaand (Noor Jehan in Urdu film 'Khandaan'); 'Nainaan bhar aye neer' (Shamshad Begum in Urdu film 'Humayun'), 'Ek tera sahara' (Shamshad Begum in Urdu film 'Shama'); 'Watan ki rah mein watan kay naujwaan Shaheed ho' (Muhammad Rafi and Khan Mastana in Urdu film Shaheed) and Bachpan ki yaadgaro (Noor Jehan in Urdu film 'Gulnaar') account for some of the immortal songs of the late maestro, which still retain their sonic appeal for the listeners of all ages.
The late Master Ghulam Haider literally overwhelmed filmmakers of his time with his creative ingenuity and enchanting depth of his melodies, which the maestro composed for a number of highly successful movies produced both before and after division of India, from Lahore and Bombay.
During his career spanning 18 years, he composed music for 28 films. Making his debut as a composer of film songs from Lahore by inventing tunes for the film 'Swarg ki seerri', he continued his compositional work for over a dozen films produced in Lahore. He scored music for the last film of his career 'Gulnaar', also produced from a Lahore studio.
In between, for seven years, he composed music for over a dozen films produced from Bombay. Included in the box office hits of late Masterji were Gul Bakauli, Yamla Jat, Chaudhry, Khazanchi, Poonji, Zamindar Khandaan and few others produced before partition by Hindu financiers from Lahore before August 14, 1947 and Humayun, Chal chal re naujawan, Shamaa, Jag beeti, Bairam Khan, Majboor, Kaniz and Shaheed produced by different movie makers in Bombay.
The last film 'Gulnaar', for which he composed music was directed by Imtiaz Ali Taj and was produced in Lahore in 1953. This film served as a creative ingenuity of the legendary composer as its songs reached the lips of millions, not only in Pakistan but also in India.
Master Ghulam Haider was a Lahori by choice as he was born in Hyderabad (Sindh) where his father practised dentistry. He belonged to the Rubabi clan of musicians, the descendants of Bhai Mardana, the rubab-playing lifelong companion of Guru Nank Dev, the founder of Sikh religion. Music, therefore, was in his blood.
After working for a few years with different theatre groups, he shifted to Lahore to compose music for Gramophone Recording Company, including a couple of widely acclaimed naats.
In 1944, he went to Bombay and created a sensation by demanding (and getting) Rs 50,000 as compensation for scoring music in Mehboob Khan's film 'Humayun' so it was stated by late composer Naushad Ali in his autobiography. In those days, Naushad was employed by Kardar Studios on a monthly salary of Rs 500 and the average remuneration of a composer did not exceed 3,000 per film. Master Ghulam Haider stayed in Bombay for about seven years and returned to Lahore in 1950.
The late maestro, affectionately known as Masterji, was an extraordinarily vigilant, eagerly curious and keen observer of as well as a participant in contemporary music experiences.
It was this searching involvement in life, which explained the fact that has occasionally been overlooked. It was the remarkable range of his compositions and the vast canvas for his melodic expression.
Style, as has aptly been observed by a critic, is the composer's personality coming to fruition. It is what distinguishes him from his contemporaries, like a face or a way of speaking. Leading composers had styles of their own; their songs were more often than not recognisable immediately as theirs and not of other composers.
Their imitators as well as their competitors could not quite duplicate the hallmark and characteristics that had gone into the making of their distinct styles and in the chiselling of their melodic personalities.
For example, the striking feature of Master Ghulam Haider's compositions was their decoration with short melodic phrases and their rhythmic drives. Moreover, his style was also subtler and far more elusive to be explained by words. With the striking of the first note from the opening prelude of his song, one could confidently predict that it was Masterji's tune.
The stark, almost unbearably tender song from the film 'Khandaan', 'Too kaun see badli mein mairey chaand', the buoyant sophistication of 'Nainaan bhar aye neer' (Humayun) and the spare, open sadness of 'Ek tera sahara' (Shama) clearly pointed to the unique quality of compositions of the late musician. Songs for his last film, 'Gulnaar', provided a befitting finale to his distinguished career that began in Lahore and ended in the same city covering a period of 18 years.
The inimitable composer, who provided hundreds of hours of listening pleasure to cine-goers and music buffs, died in Lahore on November 13, 1953 of throat cancer.
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